Suction operated hair curler with hair clamp



Oct. 26, 1965 D. L. UNDERwooD 3,213,863

SUCTION OPERATED HAIR CURLER WITH HAIR CLAMP Filed May 2 1963 FIG.I2

United States Patent O 3,213,863 SUCTION OPERATED HAIR CURLER WITH HAIR CLAMP Donald lL. Underwood, Northbrook, Ill., assigner to The Gillette Company, Boston, Mass., a corporation of Delaware Filed May 2, 1963, Ser. No. 277,506 3 Claims. (Cl. 132-38) This invention relates to a hair curler of the type having a hollow receptacle or chamber with a mouth through which the hair tress is drawn by suction for curling within the receptacle and pertains more specifically to such a curler having a semiautomatic means for clamping the curler to the hair tress.

It is known to employ suction to draw a tress of hair into the mouth of such a curler for curling within the receptacle as described, for example, in Simmons U.S. 2,791,225; or as described in the co-pending application of Mizell et al. Serial No. 262,271 field March 1, 1963, in which the receptacle has porous walls and hair is coiled against the inner face of the walls by suction. In both cases the curler may be employed by mounting it within a suction holder, which may be simply a rigid pipe or tube within the end of which the curler is held by suction. When the hair tress has been drawn into the curler through its mouth, the curler must be secured to the tress for the length of time necessary to permit the desired effect on the hair to be produced.

One object of the present invention is to provide fastening means normally biased to a closed or clamping position and arranged to be opened by engagement with the suction holder when the curler is mounted therein in position for use.

Another object is to provide a hair curler of the type described having a fastening means which is maintained in the open position while the curler is mounted in a suction holder and which is actuated to closed or clamping position simply by removal of the curler from the suction holder.

Still a further object is to provide a hair curler of the type described having a positive acting fastening means for securing the curler to the hair tress which can readily and quickly be opened or released when desired.

Other and further objects will be apparent from the drawing and from the description which follows.

In the drawings:

FIG. l is a view in side elevation of one embodiment of the present invention showing the clamping means in fully closed position;

FIG. 2 is a view in section taken along line 2 2 of FIG. l;

FIG. 3 is a view corresponding to FIG. 2 showing the clamping means in fully open position;

FIG. 4 is a view in vertical section showing the embodiment of FIG. 1 mounted in a suction holder and having a hair tress coiled therein;

FIG. 5 is a view in vertical section showing the curler of FIG. 4 after removal from the suction holder with the hair tress coiled within it;

FIG. 6 is a view in vertical section, partly broken away, showing a modified construction having a shorter neck, with the clamping means in fully closed position;

FIG. 7 is a view in section taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a view in side elevation partly broken away and in section showing another embodiment of the present invention with the clamping means in fully closed position;

FIG. 9 is a view in horizontal section taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 8;

ICC

FIG. 10 is a view in `side elevation partly broken away and in section showing the embodiment of FIG. 8 mounted in a suction holder with the clamping means in fully open position;

FIG. 11 is a view in horizontal section taken along the line 114-11 of FIG. 10; and

FIG. l2 is a view showing a suction holder in combination with a pump for producing suction by means of an air stream.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. l-5 inclusive, the hair curler includes a smooth imperforate generally flat flange 10 which extends laterally outwardly around mouth 12 and which has a diameter somewhat greater than the maximum diameter of perforate body portion 14. The upper part of the body portion is generally cylindrical, being formed of crossed monofilaments 16 of synthetic plastic composition bonded together at their intersections in lattice form. Each of the monofilaments has a rounded outer face being generally cylindrical in shape. The bottom part of the body portion is an imperforate dished member 1S presenting a concave inner face. Flange 10 and member 18 are preferably a synthetic plastic composition, member 1S bein-g bonded to the body portion by a suitable adhesive or by heat sealing. Flange I0 is similarly secured to a neck portion 20 which in turn is secured to a second smooth imperforate generally flat flange 22 somewhat smaller in diameter than flange 10 but at least as great as the maximum diameter of body portion 14.

Flange 22 is adhered or heat bonded to the upper margin of body portion 14. Suction holder 24 as shown in FIG. 4 may consist simply of a rigid pipe or tube having an open end, the inner diameter of which is somewhat smaller than that of flange 10 but greater than the diameter of flange 22 and of body portion 14. The inner margin of suction holder 24 is preferably beveled or chamfered, while the outer margin is provided with a flat surface against which flange 10 is adapted to seat.

The fastening means comprises a slide member 26 mounted adjacent the lower face of flange 10 for sliding movement transversely (i.e., radially) thereof. An aperture is provided in the wall of neck portion 20 sufficiently large to receive slide member 26 so that the llatter may slide to and from a fully closed position as shown in FIG. 2 in which it projects across neck portion 20 and closes substantially completely the mouth 12 of the curler Iand an open position las shown in FIG. 3 in which it is withdrawn from neck portion 20 to leave mouth 12 substantially open. A yoke having a pair of legs 28, 30 rigidly connects slide member 26 with a thrust member 32 having an abutment 34 on which one end of a compression coil spring 36 is seated. The other end of spring 36 is seated against the outer wall of neck portion 20 opposite the aperture through which slide member 26 moves. Accordingly, the clamping means is normally maintained in the fully closed position as shown in FIG. 2. Thrust member 32 Ialso carries a cam 38 having a sloping surface in position to be engaged by the beveled or chamfered inner margin of suction holder 24 as the curler enters the mouth of the suction holder, the cam surface sloping outwardly and upwardly from adjacent the neck portion toward the periphery of flange 10 when the clamping means is in open position, as seen in FIG. 2. The slope angle of the cam surface preferably is approximately the same as the chamfer angle. The interaction of the chamfered margin of the suction holder and the surface of cam 38 causes slide member 26 to be moved to the left as seen in FIG. 4 as the curler is forced into the mouth of the suction holder until flange 10 is seated on the margin of the suction holder at which point the fastening means is open. The suction holder 24 as appears in FIG. 12 is mounted on a flexible -hose or tube 40 which is connected to a suction pump 42 which draws an lair stream into the mouth of the suction holder 24.

In using the embodiment of the hair curler described above, pump or blower 42 is first turned on and the body portion of the hair curler is inserted in the mouth of the suction holder 24 until flange 10 is seated on its margin yas shown in FIG. 4 whereupon the fastening means will be in the open or released position by reason of the camming action of the margin of the suction holder on the surface of cam 38. Since flange 22 has an outer diameter very nearly the Vsame as the inner diameter of suction holder 24, it usually suices to bring the mouth of the suction holder close to the body portion of the curler whereupon the curler will be drawn by the air stream or suction into the mouth of the holder to the desired position. The assembly is then brought close to the end of the hair tress which it is desired to curl and the latter is drawn into the receptacle or body portion of the curler, being coiled against the inner face of the Wall thereof during the process, in the usual manner. As soon as the tress has been coiled within the hollow receptacle las desired, the curler is separated from the suction holder preferably by shutting olf the suction, e.g., by means of Ia valve or by-pass, whereupon the pressure of spring 36 may be sulicient to force the sloping surface of cam 33 over the chfamfered margin of suction holder 24, thus forcing the entire curler from within the holder. As soon Ias the curler has been withdrawn from the holder 24, spring 36 urges slide member 26 to the closed position, thus clamping the hair tress Iagainst the inner wall of neck portion 20 asshown in FIG. 5 and serving to clamp the curler securely to the hair tress. The clamping means may be opened Aand the curler removed from the hair tress by pressing the cam 38 manually, or by simply pulling the curler off the hair tress. The suction holder may Ialso be reapplied to the curler to remove it from the hair tress if desired.

The modified construction shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 differs from the foregoing in that neck portion 40 has been shortened and the second or lower flange 42 has been relieved at 44 to accommodate cam 38. The shortness of neck portion 40 facilitates the formation of a curl in the hair tress close to the scalp.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8-11 inclusive, the body 50 of the curler is of circular cross-section, the portion of which is cylindrical and the lower portion of which is in the form of a truncated cone having a generally flat bottom. A plurality [of perforations 52, 52 `are provided in the Wall and bottom of the body. The body may be formed of 1a hard rigid synthetic plastic composi* tion. Secured to and extending upwardly from the wall |of body t) is a plurality of rigid guides 54, 54, each of which is parallel to the axis of body 50. Secured at the upper ends of guides 54 is a rigid flange 56 having a central mouth 58 entering into body 50. Secured -to and extending downwardly from flange 56 toward body 50 is a cylindrical member 60 which serves both as a neck portion and as a cam. Mounted for sliding movement on guides 54 is a disc 62 of flexible elastic synthetic plastic composition having a depending skirt 64 closely embracing the outer wall of body 50 and axially slidable thereon. A projecting flange or lip 63 on the periphery of disc 62 has a diameter somewhat greater than that of suction holder 24 :and is adapted to be engaged by the margin of the suction holder. Disc 62 is also provided adjacent its center with a plurality of radial cuts or slits forming leaves or petals 66, 66, :as best seen i-n FIG. 9,

which enable the center of the disc to be opened up when engaged by the lower camming surface of member 60, Ias seen in FIGS. l0 and ll.

In use of the curler illustrated in FIGS. 8-11 inclusive, the body is inserted in suction holder 24 until the projecting lip or flange 63 is engaged by the margin thereof whereupon the suction or air stream draws the body together with Ithe flange 56 into the holder to cause the camming surface of element 60 to spread apart the leaves of disc 62. This opens mouth 58 to permit a tress of hair to pass therethrough into the interior of the receptacle or body 50 of the curler in the usual manner. When the curler is removed from the holder 24 after the hair tress has been coiled therein, the inherent elastically or resiliency of the leaves of disc 62 force the disc to slide downwardly on guides y54 until the leaves of disc 62 have firmly gripped the hair tress and clamped the curler thereto. In order to remove the hair curler from the hair tress after the desired curling operation has been completed, the disc 62 is simply urged to the open position by manually grasping its projecting peripheral flange 63 `and urging i-t along guides 54 toward the flange 56 of the curler, or in the other manner described for removal of the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 5.

Although specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein, it is not intended to limit the invention solely thereto, but to include all of the obvious variations an=d modifications within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A hair curler having la hollow perforate receptacle provided with a mouth, said receptacle being adapted o be removably mounted in a suction holder to permit a stream of air to draw a hair tress through said mouth into said receptacle for curling said hair tress therein, means mounted on said curler adjacent said mouth for releasably clamping said curler to said hair tress, said means being biased to clamping position and including camming means on said curler for releasing said clamping means upon actuation by said air stream.

2. A hair curler as claimed in claim 1 in which said clamping means is mounted for movement transversely across said mouth and said camming means includes a cam surface in position to engage the margin of said holder.

3. A hair curler as claimed in claim 2 in which said curler includes a smooth imperforate generally at flange extending laterally outwardly .around said mouth, and a neck portion embracing said mouth and connecting said liange to said receptacle, said neck portion having an aperture through one side thereof, Iand said clamping means comprises a slide element movable through said aperture, a spring urging said slide element into said aperture, and a rigid connect-ion between said slide element yand the member having the cam surface, said cam surface sloping outwardly 4and upwardly from adjacent said neck portion toward the periphery of said flange when the clamping means is in open position.

References Cited bythe Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,797,557 3/31 Stine et al. 15-344 X 2,654,372 10/53 Stoyanoff 132-38 2,791,225 5/ 57 Simmons 132-7 2,936,766 5/ 60 Beverly l32-39,

RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner. 

1. A HAIR CURLER HAVING A HOLLOW PERFORATE RECEPTACLE PROVIDED WITH A MOUTH, SAID RECEPTACLE BEING ADAPTED TO BE REMOVABLY MOUNTED IN A SUCTION HOLDER TO PERMIT A STREAM OF AIR TO DRAW A HAIR TRESS THROUGH SAID MOUTH INTO SAID RECEPTACLE FOR CURLING SAID HAIR TRESS THEREIN, MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID CURLER ADJACENT SAID MOUTH FOR RELEASABLY CLAMPING SAID CURLER TO SAID HAIR TRESS, SAID MEANS BEING BIASED TO CLAMPING POSITION AND INCLUDING CAMMING MEANS ON SAID CURLER FOR RELEASING SAID CLAMPING MEANS UPON ACTUATION BY SAID AIR STREAM. 